The purpose of this website is to provide free sermon manuscripts and sermon videos to pastors and missionaries throughout the world, especially the Third World, where there are few if any theological seminaries or Bible schools.

These sermon manuscripts and videos now go out to about 1,500,000 computers in over 221 countries every year at www.sermonsfortheworld.com. Hundreds of others watch the videos on YouTube, but they soon leave YouTube and come to our website. YouTube feeds people to our website. The sermon manuscripts are given in 46 languages to about 120,000 computers each month. The sermon manuscripts are not copyrighted, so preachers can use them without our permission. Please click here to learn how you can make a monthly donation to help us in this great work of preaching the Gospel to the whole world.

Whenever you write to Dr. Hymers always tell him what country you live in, or he cannot answer you. Dr. Hymers’ e-mail is rlhymersjr@sbcglobal.net.

Please turn to II Peter, chapter 3 and keep your Bible open.  It's page 1319 in the Scofield Study Bible.  We are going to look at several verses in this passage. The third chapter of Second Peter gives us an overview. It describes the history and future of this world. What happened to the world in the past? What is the world like today? What will happen to the world in the future? Those questions are answered in the third chapter of II Peter. We are going to plunge into that overview of history right now. It is all given in the third chapter of II Peter. Mr. Prudhomme read this chapter a few minutes ago. Turn to II Peter 3:5, 6.

I. First, the past world.

Look at II Peter 3:5, 6.

“For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished” (II Peter 3:5, 6).

The Apostle Peter is talking about the “scoffers” of the last days. He said, “there shall come in the last days scoffers...saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation” (II Peter 3:3, 4).

These scoffers will be very prominent in the last days – in the period just before the Second Coming of Christ - “the last days” of this dispensation – the last days of the world we know today. He says they will “walk after their own lusts,” "their own desires." They are described in II Peter 2:10,

“But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities” (II Peter 2:10).

They speak against authority – particularly the authority of the Bible. They despise government – or authority. They are self-willed and full of unclean lusts. These are the kind of people we see every day in the newspapers, on television, and on the Internet. It used to be just Hugh Hefner and "Playboy." Now it's everyone! People like that seem to increase every year. Leonard Ravenhill said, “These are the last days.”

These people say, “Where is the promise of his coming?” They say, “We’ve heard about the Second Coming of Christ all of our lives. We don’t believe He is ever going to come.” They say “all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” This is the doctrine of “uniformitarianism.” Evolutionary uniformitarianism completely dominates the fields of science and education today. It started with a man named Charles Lyell (1797-1875) in the nineteenth century. Before Lyell all geologists believed in the Flood of Noah’s day. But Lyell said that there was never a catastrophe like the Flood, that all things in geology continue just as they are today.

The young Charles Darwin (1809-1882) took a copy of Lyell’s book, Principles of Geology, with him to the Galapagos Islands in 1831. Darwin based his theory of evolution on Lyell’s book. The evolutionary uniformitarianism taught in the universities of our day is based on these books by Lyell and Darwin.

What the Apostle says in II Peter 3:4 is an astonishing prophecy. He said that scoffers “in the last days” would say, “All things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” No one was saying that when Peter wrote this epistle. That wasn’t taught for over nineteen hundred years, until Charles Lyell wrote his books on geology. So, this is truly a remarkable prophecy! Dr. Henry M. Morris said that Lyell’s teaching was “a most remarkable fulfillment of Peter’s prophecy and must surely indicate that these are really ‘the last days’” (Henry M. Morris, Ph.D., The New Defender’s Study Bible, World Publishing, 2006, p. 1953; note on II Peter 3:4).

Those who hold Lyell’s and Darwin’s views are called “willingly ignorant” in verse 5. Dr. Morris said, “It is remarkable that such a dominating theory of origins... could be based on absolutely no genuine evidence at all...the most basic laws of science (the laws of probability and thermodynamics) prove that genuine macro-evolution could not happen at all. Macro-evolution refers to one "kind" evolving into another "kind." That has no scientific support whatever! As Peter prophesied, this belief would be based on ‘wilful ignorance’” (ibid.). Of what are these men “willingly ignorant”? Look at verses five and six.

“For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished” (II Peter 3:5, 6).

These verses speak of the Creation and the Great Flood in the days of Noah.

There is plenty of evidence for the Great Flood in Noah’s time. I have no time in a short sermon like this to give a list of all the evidence for the Flood. Those who are interested should get a copy of “The Genesis Flood: The Biblical Record and its Scientific Implications.” It was written by Dr. John C. Whitcomb and Dr. Henry M. Morris (P and R Publishing, 1998 edition). You can buy it in our bookstore or get it at Amazon.com. This book presents many observable geological evidences for the Flood. But the “scoffers” say that the great cataclysm of the Flood never occurred. They say nothing like that happened in the past, so we don’t have to think about the judgment of Christ’s Second Coming. They are “willingly ignorant” of the Flood – that's why they are “willingly ignorant” of the Second Coming of Christ.

The ideas of Lyell and Darwin have filtered down to the average man today. Look at verses four to six. That is what the average person says,

“Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished” (II Peter 3:4-6).

The “scoffers” say that God never intervened in the past and He will never intervene in the future. They are “willingly ignorant” of the Great Flood. They are “willingly ignorant” of the Second Coming of Christ. They are materialists who have no real belief in God. Dr. W. A. Criswell (1909-2002) spoke of the results of materialism in our time. He said,

Americans are essentially materialistic. Evil stalks our nation as well as the world. The dramatic symptoms of our decaying civilization can be seen in the increasing secularization of education, the rising crime rate, the amoral background of every level of our society. The [beginning] of our ultimate [death] can be seen in our wild orgies on beach and campus, in the punks,...dope addicts, alcoholics, and irresponsible vandals who roam our streets, and in the sick readers of sick books and sick viewers of sick movies. The soul of America [and the West] has been [stained] and [ruined] by plenty, fouled and [weakened] by pleasure, and caught in the sterile junk-web of so-called science (W. A. Criswell, Ph.D., “The Materialist and the End of the World,” In Defense of the Faith, 1971 edition, Zondervan Publishing House, pp. 54, 55).

The great preacher said that over forty years ago! What would he say today? God help us!

No wonder militant Muslims are attacking the Western world! They know about the 57 million abortions in America. They see the drugs. They see the obsession with illicit sex. They see the pornography and smut. They see the breakup of our homes. They see our young people smashing and looting and rioting. They know our civilization is dying. And they don’t want it in their countries. I think that is one of the main reasons they are fighting us today. Materialism, which comes from a rejection of the Bible, is destroying the Western world tonight! Judgment is coming – just as it did in the days of Noah. But most of our leaders are “willingly ignorant” of the wrath of God hanging over our nation and our civilization!

II. Second, the present world.

The world of Noah was destroyed by water – the water of the Great Flood. But this present world will not be destroyed by another Flood. It will be destroyed by fire. Look at II Peter 3:7,

“But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (II Peter 3:7).

The Greek word translated “reserved” means “to keep.” “The same word” that created the world keeps it going until it is destroyed by fire. Jesus is the Word (John 1:1). He is the one who created the world in the first place (John 1:3). And Jesus is the one who keeps the world until it is judged by fire. People don’t realize it, but it is Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, the “Word,” who keeps man from destroying the world with nuclear weapons.

I well remember what I thought back in the 1950’s and 60’s. I thought for sure man would destroy the earth with nuclear bombs. But that did not happen. It seems like a miracle that it didn’t happen. Why didn’t it happen? Not because man is good. Not because man is sensible. Man is not good – and he is certainly not sensible!

Mankind is in rebellion against God. Our very natures have been twisted and perverted by sin. Ever since our first parents rebelled in the Garden of Eden, man has lusted and fought and killed. What stopped the human race from destroying itself with nuclear weapons? That always seemed a mystery until I read II Peter 3:7. Suddenly I knew that it was Christ Himself who kept the world “reserved unto fire” until the day of judgment. H. G. Wells was an atheist. When he saw what an atomic bomb could do he said, “The end of everything we call life is close at hand.” But that was decades ago and we are still here. For over sixty years Christ, the Word of the Father, has held back the Judgment, “kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (II Peter 3:7).

Why does God wait? Why doesn’t He judge this sinful world now? The answer is in verses eight and nine,

“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (II Peter 3:8, 9).

A thousand years or one day are the same in God’s sight. Dr. A. T. Robertson said, “God’s clock does not run by our timepieces” (Word Pictures; note on II Peter 3:8). God understands time much differently from us.

As I prepared this sermon I looked out of the window in my study. I saw some baby birds that were just learning to fly. At the very most they will only live about 3 or 4 years. They will only see three more summers at the most. I am seeing summer for the seventy-fourth time. I will probably see another ten or more summers before I die. To the baby birds summer is a very long time. To me it is a very short time, because we humans live so long. But God lives for all eternity. A thousand years is a huge amount of time for us. But for God a thousand years is like a day. As that grand old hymn puts it,

A thousand ages in Thy sight
   Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
   Before the rising sun.
(“O God, Our Help in Ages Past” by Isaac Watts, D.D., 1674-1748).

Why does God wait to judge the world? Verse nine gives the reason. God is “longsuffering to us-ward.” The modern translation has it, “He is patient with us.” I believe God is waiting “until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in” (Romans 11:25), or, as the NIV puts it, “until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.” God was in no hurry in the days of Noah. He waited 120 years while Noah built the Ark. Then He waited until every animal and bird that He chose came into the Ark. Then He waited for Noah’s sons and their wives to come in. Then He waited until Noah and his wife came in. The Bible says that only then did “the Lord shut him in” (Genesis 7:16).

A day will come when the last person is saved – the very last one. Then “the full number” will be in. No more will come. Then judgment will fall on this present evil world. We plead with you every Sunday, “Come in! Come in! Come to Jesus now – before it is too late!” One day it will be too late. Don’t gamble with your soul. Come to Jesus now!

III. Third, the future world.

What will happen to this world in the future? I had hoped to spend more time on this, but I’ll come back to it in another sermon. Look at II Peter 3:10-12.

“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?” (II Peter 3:10-12).

The “elements” will “melt” on that day. The word “elements” is from the Greek word “stoicheion.” It is the Greek word for what we call “atoms.” This will be an atomic explosion greater than anything man can imagine. Dr. J. Vernon McGee said, “It ends with this great atomic explosion sent by God, this great judgment of the earth by its being dissolved by fire” (Thru the Bible, volume V; note on II Peter 3:10).

It may seem strange to you, but I was converted during a sermon on these verses. The words struck me like a freight train. The world was going to explode. What would happen to me? Quite suddenly I knew that I had no hope – none at all! – unless I had Christ.

Someone may say this sermon is too negative. But I say that it's realistic. I believe that sermons should speak the truth rather than tickle the ears. True Christians need to think about the end of the world. It we don’t hear that in sermons we will become worldly. We will forget that this world is going to end. We will forget to lay up treasures in Heaven. We will forget to do the work of God - to pray, to win souls, to prepare for eternity. We will forget to seek “first the kingdom of God.” I have never said people couldn't get saved in another church. Of course not! But I do say I have never known anyone who left this church and became a dynamic Christian. Why? Because they left here to escape being a dynamic Christian!

To the unsaved, I will tell you a little story from one of Billy Graham’s books. Mr. Graham is wrong on some things. I have been saying that for years. But he is also right about many things. Mr. Graham wrote two very good books. One of them is on angels. The other one is called World Aflame (Doubleday and Company, 1965). I have read it many times. In one of the chapters Mr. Graham spoke of meeting a man in prison who was about to be executed. That man was about to die. He said to Mr. Graham, “Can you explain once again what I must do to be forgiven of my sins? I want to know that I am going to heaven” (page 148). Mr. Graham did not go on to tell us what he said to that man. But the Bible says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).

Christ died on the Cross to pay the penalty for your sin. When you trust Christ, His Blood instantly cleanses you “from all sin” (I John 1:7). I told you I was saved during a sermon on the third chapter of II Peter. What did I do that day? It was very simple. I trusted Jesus. And Jesus saved me. It was as simple as that!

Jesus paid it all,
   All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
   He washed it white as snow.
(“Jesus Paid It All” by Elvina M. Hall, 1820-1889).

If we are not saved from our sin by Jesus, we have nothing to look forward to but a world in flames and destruction; as the famous atheist Bertrand Russell said, “a universe in ruins.” Without Christ that is all you have to look forward to – “a universe in ruins.”

Heavenly Father, I pray that someone hearing this sermon, or reading the manuscript, will be drawn by Thy Spirit to Jesus, and saved from their sin by Him. He died on the Cross to pay for our sins. He rose from the dead to give us eternal life and hope. Father, I pray that Thou wilt draw someone to Jesus through this sermon. In His name, Amen.

If this sermon blessed you please send an e-mail to Dr. Hymers and
tell him - rlhymersjr@sbcglobal.net (click here). You can write to
Dr. Hymers in any language, but write in English if you can.

(END OF SERMON)
You can read Dr. Hymers' sermons each week on the Internet
at www.rlhsermons.com or www.realconversion.com.
Click on “Sermon Manuscripts.”

You may email Dr. Hymers at rlhymersjr@sbcglobal.net, (Click Here) – or you may
write to him at P.O. Box 15308, Los Angeles, CA 90015. Or phone him at (818)352-0452.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO OF ""

These sermon manuscripts are not copyrighted. You may use them without Dr. Hymers’
permission. However, all of Dr. Hymers’ video messages are copyrighted
and can only be used by permission.

Scripture Read Before the Sermon by Mr. Abel Prudhomme: II Peter 3:3-13.
Solo Sung Before the Sermon by Mr. Benjamin Kincaid Griffith:
“How Big Is God?” (by Stuart Hamblen, 1908-1989).